Passengers asked to step on scales

By STUART DYE, transport reporter

Aviation safety chiefs will survey thousands of people to find a new average passenger weight as the population gets bigger.

Under present weight calculations a jumbo-load of New Zealanders could be nearly three tonnes above the standard passenger weight figure, a Civil Aviation Authority study says.

Around 6000 people will be weighed as part of a survey to determine a new standard passenger weight.

The authority says the present weight of 77kg is nowhere near enough. Previous studies in 1999 suggest it should be closer to 85kg.

The figure is used by airlines to calculate the passenger payload - the total weight of the people on board.

The discrepancy between the current figure and what it should be could lead to safety issues as airlines balance the passenger weight with the amount of fuel and freight a plane can carry.

It could also force airlines to shed seats and spend more on fuel.

The aviation industry had questioned the 1999 studies.

But it is in the interest of airline operators to keep the weight as low as possible so that more people or freight can be carried on the aircraft, said CAA spokesman Bill Sommer.

"That's how they make their money."

In response the authority is carrying out a survey aimed at validating, and if necessary updating, that result.

Passengers at airports around the country will be asked to step on to the scales before they board to find the average adult weight.

Mr Sommer urged people to co-operate with the survey.

"We're not trying to embarrass people, there will be no comments passed, and it will be completely anonymous," he said.

If the average weight of 400 passengers and crew of an Air New Zealand Boeing 747-400 is 7kg more than the average set down in the rulebook, the plane is carrying an extra load the equivalent of two family-sized cars.

An airline spokeswoman, Rosie Paul, acknowledged any extra weight would be an extra cost to the airline.

But the company did not expect the results of the survey to have a significant impact.

"We've been operating way above the current average for some time, at 82kg," said Ms Paul.

Passengers boarding domestic aircraft in Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch, Queenstown and Tekapo will be asked to take part in the voluntary survey, which runs from October 9 until November 13.

Two thousand passengers from three aircraft category - the Boeing 737 jet, medium-sized regional aircraft and small planes and helicopters used by tourist operators - will be surveyed.

The survey should give a standard passenger weight that is accurate to within 1 per cent.

Aircraft operators can use the standard weight or use their own measures to determine the actual weight of individual passengers on the flight.

But regardless of the standard weight, it is the pilot's responsibility to ensure the aircraft is not overloaded, said Mr Sommer.

The survey results are expected by the end of next month.